Anthony Hopkins: ‘Awards season is disgusting’

Sir Anthony Hopkins is hoping to take a backseat during Hollywood’s upcoming awards season because he can’t stand the prospect of pandering to producers in a bid to land a prize.

The Welsh star already boasts a huge collection of trophies, including Emmys, BAFTAs and Golden Globes, as well as a Best Actor Academy Award for his role in “The Silence of the Lambs.”

He is tipped to win another Oscar for his portrayal of film legend Alfred Hitchcock in new movie Hitchcock, but Hopkins is adamant he doesn’t want to join in the annual parties and publicity trail.

Hopkins tells The Hollywood Reporter, “I’ve been around – I’ve got the Oscar myself for ‘Silence of the Lambs’ and having to be nice to people and to be charming and flirting with them… Oh, come on! People go out of their way to flatter the nominating body and I think it’s kind of disgusting. That’s always been against my nature… You know, kissing the backside of the authorities that can make or break it; I can’t stand all that. I find it nauseating to watch and I think it’s disgusting to behold.

“People groveling around and kissing the backsides of famous producers and all that. It makes me want to throw up, it really does. It’s sick-making. I’ve seen it so many times. I saw it fairly recently, last year. Some great producer-mogul and everyone kisses this guy’s backside. I think, ‘What are they doing? Don’t they have any self respect?’ I wanted to say, ‘F— off.’”